Man guilty in '07 slaying at Aurora motel

A self-proclaimed Aurora gang member faces a prison sentence of 45 years to life after being convicted today by a DuPage County judge for the 2007 murder of a Hillside man in a motel parking lot.

Enrique Torres, 27, was in the process of burglarizing several cars in the parking lot of a Super 8 motel in the 4200 block of Longmeadow Drive in Aurora on April 14, 2007, when he was confronted by Edgar Hill, 35, who was an overnight patron of the motel, according to Assistant State’s Attorney Steven Knight.

The two began to began to fight, and while Hill lay battered on the ground, Torres retrieved a handgun and fatally shot him several times, Knight said. Torres and Hill had never previously met, Knight said.

Torres was arrested the next day in an unrelated incident, but several other people told police that Torres was talking about the murder. At the bench trial held last week, Torres former girlfriend, Elvia Patterson, testified that she was with Torres when Hill was shot from a distance of about a foot.

Patterson admitted that she had charges in another unrelated Kane County criminal case dropped when she agreed to testify against Torres in the Hill murder trial.

Another motel patron testified that she was awakened by the fight and, while looking out the window about 6 a.m., saw Torres fire the fatal shots at Hill, who was lying on the ground in a fetal position.

Judge Robert Kleeman said that there was enough evidence from numerous sources to find Torres guilty.

Torres has a long criminal record and is currently serving a prison sentence for aggravated battery with a firearm in a Kane County case, according to court records.